Archives for June 2012

Adopting a dog is costly. There is the initial adoption fee but you also have to take into consideration grooming and feeding costs as well as other pet supplies. When all is said and done, raising your pup could really add up.

But some dogs can actually cost you more depending on the breed. That’s because some dogs are famously known for having hereditary diseases that can result in a lot of excessive trips to the vet and an abundance of medical bills. If you don’t think you’ll be able to afford these extra expenses, you should probably invest in pet insurance or avoid getting the breeds listed below all together.

Dalmatians

Dalmatians are big and beautiful and can be the perfect addition to any family, however they are the most prone to having severe health issues. Not only are they more likely to suffer from deafness and blindness (glaucoma) because the genes that make their coat partially white are typically mutated (so make sure the breeder gets a Brainstem Auditory Evoked Response test and the Canine Eye Registry Foundation test respectively) but Dalmatians are also most likely to suffer from kidney stones, hip dysplasia, epilepsy, and thyroid issues that can lead to low levels of energy and weight gain.

Collie

All collie breeds, including the rough and smooth collies, the border collie, and the Shetland sheepdog are prone to suffering from a disorder appropriately called Collie Eye Anomaly. This disorder results when a lack of the blood supply to the retina eventually causes the retina to detach. Naturally, the retinal detachment causes blindness in the eye. Sadly, this can occur as early as the collie’s first two years of life.

Miniature and Toy Poodles

These pint-size poodles can be the perfect lap dog, but they can also suffer from many muscular and cardiovascular issues that can cause a lot of heartbreak for your soul and your wallet. The most common diseases associated with miniature and toy poodles is Patellar Luxation—a disorder where the knee cap does not properly fit in the socket and it causes the dog to limp or make a loud “popping” sound every time the leg is bent; Legg Calve-Perthes Disease—a disorder where the hip bone is not properly aligned and causes excruciating pain; and Patent Ductus Arteriosus—a disorder at birth where too much blood is pumped into the left side of the heart causing a heart enlargement.

Labrador Retriever

Last but no least is the Labrador retriever. They’re generally very healthy dogs, but of course they wouldn’t be on this list if they weren’t susceptible to certain hereditary diseases. Similar to Dalmatians, Labradors can suffer from both hip and elbow dysplasia. But they can also suffer from dwarfism, muscular weakness (muscular dystrophy) and collapse when they physical exert themselves, better known as exercise induced collapse.

Author Bio: This is a guest post by Nadia Jones who blogs at online college about education, college, student, teacher, money saving, movie related topics. You can reach her at nadia.jones5 @ gmail.com.

Google+ Local is being hyped up around the web as people speculate and create panic among the masses–should you be worried?

Probably not.

Google is working to level the playing field for any online business presence. At the moment, you’ll see your Google Places within your Google Plus dashboard but in some cases, you’ll have to search for it.

If you have already established a Google+ business page, there are plans to merge the two in the near future.

Probably the biggest game changer now is the integration of a rating system being used on Zagat (a web property owned by Google) and this will help eliminate some issues behind many false reviews.

So, what does this mean to you?

Not having a Gmail and Google+ account will now be a thing of the past if you want to promote.

If your business is not yet on Google Places or don’t have a Google+ business page it is time to think about getting that done–but get help doing it and don’t just slap it up since there is a right way and a wrong way to do so.

If you don’t yet have a Google Places listing or are unfamiliar with Gmail and Google+, ARKtech can help you with both.

I’ll have a web-u-cation session on this shortly for those on our mailing list or Facebook community to review.